Tennis-racket frame.



M. B. REACH & W. RIOHBX.

TENNIS RACKET FRAME.

APPLICATION FILED No.1, 1914.

1,131,418. Patented Mar.9,1915.

2 SHEETS-SHEET 1.

I y g N* n. Q me Ail'; 8 Inventors: Mdc J .7m/'atm 5.5m@

v William Riche MSWW M. B. REACH 6L W. RICHEY.

TENNIS RAGKET FRAME.

APPLICATION P'LLED DEC.1.1914.

1,131,418. Patented Mar. 9, 1915.

2 SHEETS'SHEET 2.

i #s o@ No lit/513 Invennrs.'

Mfg@ Milton 512mm, i

are supplie UNTTED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

MILTON B. REACH, 0F SPRINGFIELD, AND WILLIAM RICHEY, 0F CHICOPEE, MASSA-i CHUSETTS, ASSIGNORS TO A. G. SPALDING & BROS. MANFG. C O., 0F CHICOPEE. MASSACHUSETTS, A CORPORATION QF MASSACHUSETTS.

TENNE-BACKET FRAME.

Speccationvot Letter.; Patent.

Patented Mar. 9, 1915.

Application ti1ed December 1, 1914. eria1 No. 875,030.

To all whom it may concern Be it known that we, MILTON B. Ramon and WILLIAM RICHEY, citizens of the United States, residing, respectively, at Springfield and Chicopee, Massachusetts, .have invente@ certain new and useful Improvements Relating to Tennis -Racket Frames, of which the following is a specification.

It is the object of our invention to provide a tennis racket frame of a multi-part construction, z'. e., of a plurality of strlps yglued together, the construction iving rise to a number of advantages as' will appear 'hereinafter.

The invention consists in the features and combination and arrangement of parts heteinafter described and particularly lpointed out .in the claims.

'In the accompanying drawing: Figure 1 is a plan view of the frame; Fig. 2 is `aiseetional view across the handle; and Fig. is across sectional view through theupper part of the frame; Fig. 4 is a plan view of a modified form of frame; Fig. 5 is a cross 'sectional View of the handle of Fig. 4; Fig.-

6 a cross sectional view through ltheuppex part ofthe frame of Fig. 4.

Referring to Figs. 1 to 3, the main art of the frame is indicated at 1, and the andle at 2. These parts are usually made up of a strip of wood as ash, the two end portions of the strip being brought together andfforming the handle. Difficulty has been experienced heretofore in producing ood ash frames-to given weights, the ten ency being to have an excess of weight.4 In can rying'out the presentinvention, instead o1 using what may be termed a one piece strip,"

we employ two strips such as 3, 4, and join them along an inclined or diagonal line as indicated at w. By using two or more strips one of them may be o f ash and the other o a lighter. wood, and yet by making the frame and* handle of a plurality of strips lued together, the necessary strength Wi be 0b` tained. With this two or more part construction, the neutral strength of lamination is secured and increased strength is obtained because of the increased area of gluing surface due to the diagonal juncture between the two strips. j

In making up the frame, the .two strips with glue between their inf clned or diagonal meeting faces and pressure is then applied by which one part is forced with a wedging'action upon the other, thus insuring perfect contact throughout the wedging or inclined surfaces and securing a perfect joint at all points. l

t will be seen from the cross sectional View of the handle that the two ends of the one sstrip are indicated at 3, 3, and the .two portions of the other strip are shown ,at 4, 4. he' lue is applied to the surfaces'in ,the hande t 1.6.0-

In the manufacture of lthe above described frame, 'a strip of Wood of rectangular cross section is first formed, and then it is mac'hIned,`-that is to say, we taire' a one piece strig of cross sectional shape and form or ben it intothe general shape shown in Fig.

v1. The strip isthen inachined,l that is, it"`is lanother' form of the invention, 5 indicates the outexustrip, and 6 an inner strip, the former'being made with a. channel '#7 on its inner face, 'the sides or walls of which ,are

'mclinedand divergent from their meeting fointior apex to the inner face'of the strip. he other stri is shaped as a. complement 'of thefirsthstrip, it having inclined surfaces 8 meetingat "9 forming a raised wedgelshaped.surface adapted to lit into the corre- Y pondingly shaped channel of the strip 5.'

ue is applied to the meeting surfaces of the strips and upon pressurebeing applied,V one str1p is wedged Into close contact with the other and a tight joint is made throu hout the extent of the meeting surfaces. he outer strip may be of ash, and the inner one may be of lighter material, and thus any given weight may be obtained, avoiding the i objection of the frames running heavy in their manufacture when made entirely of ash. In making this form'of the invention, each strip 5, 6, is made or machined sepa.- rately in its` lengthwise form. They are then tied or otherwise held4 together and placed in a stea'mtank in their straightform. After they "have becomle'l'sopftfand lflexible, they lare ,copjfinily ben 'ia'.floufld 'i an viron formado., .whileAst-ill;W *nld together.; They are then clampedandpla'ced ina dry kiln until thoroughly-set 1n this bent form. After this the stripsareseparated, and their inclined surfaces animated-with glue, and then the inner` member is-expanded into perfect contactwithftho te'rtpiece, in which position 'they' aflclaf edi'in'vdthe vglue allowed tofset. tli'sjy orinfof'the :invention in .whicht'he tonestrip vinterl'ocks' j'with the other by an inclined "-portion?onionegextending into a correspondfm ""rece v he'other, the joining ofthe-tIv v bez-made readily,.,as one. relation in -respec more, in this` const enienced i'n bending ull 'size in cross sect1lbending such fullsize l wood are liable to ybeld sto ruptured at, for instance, the pointsyiiow'ing Jtothe sharpness of the bend at'these points', but with the two part construction each strip, being thinner thanthe fullthickness'of the combined stri will bend without rupture or breaking o the fibers, and-the inner strip will be free to creep on the outer strip.

. 1n both forms of the invention one lmember of the frame is wedged into contact with the other, and in both forms extended surfaces are provided for gluing the parts together.

We prefer to form a channel at in one strip so that when the two strips are brought together, .the channel will in effect provide a hollow or air space within the frame and handle.

`We claim as our 1nvent1on:-.

-. 1. A tennis racket frame consisting of a lurality of strips having contacting faces inclined in respect tothe outer faces 'of said frame and glued together, substantially as p described.

- 2. A tennis racket frame consisting of a.

faces inclined in respect to the outer faces of said frame, the handle havin@ its two sides glued together and each side having its two strips glued together alon inclined surfaces, one strip having its si es wed ed in between the sides of the other strip, su stantially as described.

3. A tennis racket frame comprising two or more pieces having inclined faces, in wedging contact, with glue between said inclined faces uniting the pieces together, substantially as described. Y

4. A tennis racket frame comprising two strips, one of which is formed with a channeled face and the other of which is formed rwith a protuberant portion to fit said chanyalong the'faces o their intermeshing portions.V 4, i y

l Aftennisracket frame comprising two I strips, one bwhich is formed with ai wedgesha-ped'channel and the other of which is formed with --a protuberant wedge-shaped ortion to iitsald channel, the two strips ein'g glued together along their inclined contacting surfaces, said strips having a free space between their adjacent faces, substantially as described.

6. A tennis racket frame comprising two n strips, one of which is formed with a wedgeshaped channel and the other of which is formed with a protuberant wedge-shaped ortion to fit said channel, the two strips eing glued together along their inclined contacting surfaces, said channel and wedgesha ed ortion'having their apices directed in t e p fine of the frame.

In testimony 'whereof,we aflix our signatures in presence of two witnesses.

MILTON B. REACH. WILLIAM RICHEY.

Witnesses:

ISABELLE K. GANLEY, Denman E. Santorin. 

